Cardinal Chains vs Drain Brain
Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both games, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.
Cardinal Chains
A minimalist puzzle game where players link numbers in non-decreasing sequences to fill a monochrome grid with color. It offers a relaxing experience with a handcrafted soundtrack and elegant design, free from timers or ads.
- 500 unique handcrafted puzzles
- Non-decreasing sequence gameplay
- Chill-out soundtrack
- Minimalist design
- Customizable color themes
- Achievements and cloud saves
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Cardinal Chains is a minimalist puzzle game centering on the concept of non-decreasing sequences. Each puzzle begins with a monochrome grid of numbers, plus a few colored cells marked with an X. Starting at these cells, you must link up numbers in non-decreasing order until the whole grid is filled with color. • 500 unique, carefully handcrafted puzzles of varying difficulty, each with a single solution • Beautiful, lengthy chill-out soundtrack created by accomplished professional artists • Minimalist, elegant design without timers, ads, purchases or other hassles - just pure gameplay • Several built-in color themes, including colorblind options. Or... • ...make your own color themes - right from within the game! • Features achievements and cloud saves
Drain Brain
A retro-styled puzzle game where players connect pipes on a grid to create a path for flowing liquid. Score points by filling pipes and race against the clock to fix dead ends before the flow stops. Features include various pipe types, a smart queue, and bombs to correct mistakes.
- Pipe connection puzzles
- Retro LCD handheld style
- Progressive difficulty
- Smart queue system
- Game Center leaderboards
- Original soundtrack
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Connect pipes before the flow catches up in Drain Brain, a retro-styled puzzle game inspired by classic LCD handhelds! Place pipes on a grid to create a path from start to goal. Once the countdown ends, liquid begins flowing through your creation. Every pipe it fills scores points, but if the flow hits a dead end, you've got seconds to fix it or it's game over! Features: • 7 pipe types including cross pipes that can score twice! • Smart queue system with 5 upcoming pieces! • 3 bombs per level to fix mistakes! • Progressive difficulty that speeds up as you advance! • Game Center leaderboards and achievements! • Original soundtrack by Nobonoko! • Themes, and more! Easy to learn. Hard to master. Each level pushes you faster. How far can you go?!?!?!
Screenshots
Verdict
The clearest difference is price: Drain Brain at Free against Cardinal Chains's $2.99. Drain Brain also leads on update cadence (daily vs every 5 months). Cardinal Chains's advantage is ratings volume (24 vs 1) and iOS requirement (15.6 vs 26.0). On rating, review sentiment, ads and in-app purchases there is nothing between them.
Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS
Drain Brain is free to download; Cardinal Chains costs $2.99 up front. Neither carries in-app purchases, so what you see is what you pay.
On the App Store both sit at effectively the same score — 4.9 for Cardinal Chains against 5.0 for Drain Brain. That said, the two scores are not equally well evidenced: Cardinal Chains has 24 ratings behind it against 1, so its average is the more settled of the two. Written reviews split almost evenly too, at 100% and 100% positive.
Cardinal Chains ships an update every 5 months, Drain Brain daily. The most recent releases landed on September 21, 2026 and October 2, 2026 respectively.
| Parameter | Cardinal Chains | Drain Brain |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $2.99 | Free — better |
| Rating | 4.9 (24 ratings) | 5.0 (1 ratings) — better |
| Positive reviews | 100.0% of reviews | 100.0% of reviews |
| Number of ratings | 24 — better | 1 |
| Update frequency | Every 5 months | Daily — better |
| Ads | No | No |
| In-app purchases | No | No |
| Monetization | Paid | Free — better |
| Devices | iPhone, iPad, iPod — better | iPhone, iPad |
| Requires iOS | 15.6 — better | 26.0 |
| Further details — not scored | ||
| Size | 101 MB | 14 MB |
| Age rating | 4+ | 4+ |
| Developer | Daniel Nora | Symbolic Software |
Customer experience
Cardinal Chains
Drain Brain
In-app purchases
Cardinal Chains
No in-app purchases
Drain Brain
No in-app purchases









